Golborne Road’s hottest new opening, The Counter is bringing the
bold flavours of southeastern Anatolian cuisine to west London.
Headed up by chef Kemal Demirasal, who is also behind Istanbul’s
Alancha restaurant, which closed in 2021 in preparation for this
London launch, the inviting 45-cover space features a mish-mash of
seating – brown leather banquettes, wicker chairs and metal bar
stools – complemented by overgrown potted plants, bare-brick walls,
exposed pipework, pendant lighting and blonde wood. All eyes are on
the open kitchen, which also doubles as a bar, where the dynamic
chefs whip up your order on the open-fire charcoal grill.
Seasonality is at the core of every dish, from starters that
include mint-drenched lamb skewers served with tahini cream, to
mains such as sirloin kebabs with thin-cut fries, and majestic,
perfectly seasoned pork chops. Turn to the dessert menu to find
traditional semolina cake, burnt rice pudding and sorbets in every
flavour.

This is not Fadi Kattan’s first rodeo. The Franco-Palestinian
co-founder and chef of the recently opened Akub is also behind
Fawda (“Chaos”) in Bethlehem, an acclaimed 12-key boutique hotel
and restaurant where there’s no menu, dishes being based on
whatever Kattan can get hold of from the farmers on any given day.
Here, in the sedate surrounds of Uxbridge Street, in an intimate,
three-storey townhouse, the modern Palestinian menu might leave
less to chance, but the food is just as firmly rooted in the
Levantine larder. Arriving on earthy tableware from Jaffa-based
Palestinian ceramicist Nur Minawi, standouts include the shish
barak with beetroot – squidgy little pumpkin dumplings in a pine
nut-studded swirl of beetroot tahini – and sheikh el mahsi – glossy
baby aubergines stuffed with pickled herbs and walnuts. On our
visit, we toasted the restaurant’s health with Palestinian Taybeh
beer and a smooth Armenian Tale of Two Mountains red, and somehow
found room for the hilbeh baba – a syrup-drenched fenugreek and
cardamom baba with whipped cream and pistachios.

FoodTok has entered the chat. If you thought your favourite
social app only offered dirty burgers and alarming candy creations
in the food department, think again. One of its stars, Thomas
Straker, has made video fame a stepping stone to owning his own
restaurant. We’re exaggerating – a bit. Straker also has solid
kitchen pedigree, having worked at The Dorchester and Dinner by
Heston Blumenthal, but it was his pandemic-era posts that made him
one to watch – and set London abuzz over the opening of his first
bricks-and-mortar restaurant. Swing by to eat small plates and
sharing platters centred around sustainability and seasonality,
though, at only 40 covers, you’d be wise to secure a table
reservation first.

Named after the Outer Hebridean region where chef Jackson Boxer
and his family have spent their summers since he was young, Orasay
has a refined menu that focuses heavily (and somewhat
unsurprisingly) on seafood. Tuck into the likes of scallops, river
oysters and Shetland mussels – alongside a fair few land-based
dishes, including a wood-grilled Tamworth chop with Cévennes onions
and brown shrimp. Book ahead: the elegant dining room – kitted out
with slouchy linen banquettes and unclothed antique French oak
tables, lime-washed walls adorned with abstract paintings by the
chef’s mother, Kate Boxer – has limited seating.

Suzi Tros offers similar Greek cuisine to its neighbouring
sister restaurant Mazi, but with a focus on pared-back small
plates. Dishes inspired by the diners of Thessaloniki are simple
and prices are modest, ranging from £2 to £22. Start with the
creamy taramasalata served with grill-marked bread, then move on to
the prawn saganaki and smoked aubergine laden with tahini and
honey. Other must-orders include a more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts
tomato and cucumber salad, and turbot (served off the bone) with
zesty greens. Request a table upstairs in the bright back room if
you’re planning a drawn-out dinner or, for a quick bite, aim for
the bar seating towards the front of the restaurant.

Choose from a well-edited menu of small bites at the Tel
Aviv-inspired Haya to stave off hunger while final decisions are
being reached. Our suggestion? The grilled halloumi skewers and
padron peppers served with smoked salt and harissa mayo.
Mains-wise, a strong order for two would read: Jaffa-style
cauliflower; asparagus with cashew sauce and feta cheese; spiced
lamb cutlets with honey yoghurt; and a tendril of grilled octopus
served with rainbow chard and turmeric emulsion. The dessert
offering is just as good. Let your fullness levels be your guide
and either go light – the deconstructed lemon meringue and
raspberries (perfect for those whose key interest in the
traditional dessert is the whippy top) – or go all-out – the
home-baked cookies served with chocolate fudge, salted-caramel ice
cream and hazelnuts.

This three-floor neighbourhood restaurant on Portobello Road
would go unnoticed were it not for the rave reviews being whispered
across London. A hybrid between a pub and an al fresco dining
space, Gold’s interior is informal and eclectic. The ground level
is the most atmospheric, thanks to the garden terrace’s dusty coral
walls, potted palms and a strong hurricane lantern-to-table ratio.
Cooked over fire, dishes are designed to be shared and are served
as soon as they’re ready. Don’t miss the wood-roasted whole sea
bream with wild oregano and capers, or the black tiger and
datterini tomato salad with salted ricotta, basil and verjus
dressing. The burrata with charred flat peaches, Tuscan ham,
radicchio and balsamic dressing is also a knockout.

This peaceful artisanal bakery-come-wine bar is like a little
slice of Paris – all wooden floors, rusty lights and a marble bar
topped with perfect floury bread and fluffy cakes. Choose from an
all-day breakfast menu of classic egg dishes (including a
note-perfect ham and cheese omelette), hot bagels, fruit and lots
of seasonal toppings piled onto crunchy sourdough. The coffee is
excellent, too, which calls for bagging a corner and curling up
with a book in the sunlight until the wine starts flowing.

This casual, contemporary restaurant founded by Emily Roux and
Diego Ferrari oozes with character, serving up a romantic vibe in
softly lit surrounds. Interiors blend edge and polish – think rough
brick walls and velvet seating – and the menu is similarly
eclectic, with a focus on Italian and French cuisine (to reflect
its owners’ respective provenances). Feast on an à la carte menu
featuring the likes of stuffed saddle of Lake District lamb, served
with spinach, trompette mushrooms, smoked potato and jus, or try a
wider selection of dishes by opting for the £115 tasting menu.

After their success in Soho and East London, the soup-and-noodle
masters behind Tonkotsu have voyaged west. Few things beat a bowl
of steaming ramen with a cold beer – which explains why we struggle
to go a week without visiting this place. The bouncy noodles are
made in-house and the slow-cooked pork broths come topped with
sliced chicken, tender pork, spring onions and a gooey marinated
egg, all sprinkled with the famous Tonkotsu “eat the bits” chilli
oil. Be sure to try the fried ginger and soy chicken, silky gyoza
and one of the killer Japanese-inspired cocktails.

Looking for top-notch Japanese cuisine in west London? Look no
further. This modern Japanese diner housed over the ground floor of
iconic 1980s music and dance venue the Market Bar is loved locally
for signature dishes that include hamachi tiradito, prawn
carpaccio, black cod miso, pork belly buns and sushi. The dining
room is lavished with pop art posters, retro light fixtures and
Japanese cartoons, with live DJ sets adding to the fun every
Friday, Saturday and Sunday night.

Taco obsessed? Head straight to Taqueria, a slick,
industrial-chic Mexican joint on Westbourne Grove that started life
as a Portobello Road food stall, before opening here in 2005.
House-made soft corn tortillas come loaded with traditional
fillings like battered fish, juicy slow-cooked beef, and shredded
pork with pickled jalapeño, or more contemporary options such as
soft-shell crab, and fried plantain with cheese. You’ll want to
sample as many as you can fit on the table, but save space for some
ceviche tostadas, garlic-mushroom quesadillas, a deep-fried oyster
with chipotle mayo and, of course, margaritas – the pink grapefruit
and cucumber iteration is not to be missed.

Helmed by Chris D’Sylva, the powerhouse behind Notting Hill Fish
Shop and Supermarket of Dreams, along with an all-star hospitality
team, this elegant bistro has all the ingredients that make for a
stellar date-night spot – picture marble-topped tables, dark wood,
gold fixtures and chequered flooring. Chef Max Coen is behind a
crowd-pleasing menu of refined, French-inspired classics – think
Gillardeau oysters, liver parfait on toast, and beef tartare –
while the wine list is predominantly made up of French and Italian
bins, with an ever-evolving collectors’ list of vintages also up
for grabs. Tables, unsurprisingly, book up fast, so be sure to
reserve in advance to avoid any veal sweetbread FOMO.